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News Release
RI Department of Environmental Management
235 Promenade Street, Providence, RI 02908
(401) 222-2771 TDD/(401) 222-4462
For Release: October 6, 2005
Contact: Gail Mastrati 222-4700 ext. 2402
Stephanie Powell 222-4700 ext. 4418

WALK IN THE WOODS WITH FORESTERS
Annual Forestry Program Will Be Held on October 18 at The Nature Conservancy's Carter Preserve in Charlestown

PROVIDENCE - The Rhode Island Chapter of the Society of American Foresters and the Department of Environmental Management announce their 13th annual "Walk in the Forest" program and invite school classes and the general public to participate. The program is designed to educate the public about the benefits of healthy forests and how foresters care for them.

"The Walk in the Forest program is scheduled in the fall because it is such a beautiful time to be in the woods," said DEM principal forester Paul Dolan, education coordinator of RISAF. Foresters will lead small groups through the woods on hour-long tours, and explain what participants see around them. "Rhode Islanders are interested in learning about their environmental surroundings," Dolan said. "With 55 percent of Rhode Island covered by forests," he added, "this educational program has always drawn a good response."

This year's walks will be held on Tuesday, October 18 from 9 a.m. to noon at The Nature Conservancy's Francis C. Carter Memorial Preserve in Charlestown. The 841-acre Carter Preserve joins several thousand acres of contiguous forest, contributing to an 11-mile corridor of open space running from the Ninigret National Wildlife Refuge to the state's Carolina Management Area. Its oak forest, pine barrens, wetlands, and fields support numerous plants, animals, and natural communities, most notably a rare pitch pine/scrub oak barrens, vernal pools, and a sizable grassland.

"Participants in the walks are invited to bring a bag lunch and enjoy the area," Dolan says. The walks will begin at Old Mill Road off Route 112 in Charlestown, just north of the Meadow Brook Inn.

School groups of more than 10 students must make reservations by Friday, October 14. The general public should come at the top of the hours to be included in school tours or with a special group for adults. To make reservations or ask questions, contact Dolan at DEM's Division of Forest Environment at 647-3367 or via e-mail at pdolan@ridem.necoxmail.com.

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